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FLAMBOYANT Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has thrown down the
gauntlet to fellow big guns by declaring a "war" for the No.1
ranking this year.

And it's one he expects to be in the thick of after confidently
rating himself capable of winning the Australian Open in the first
grand slam event of the new year.

Tsonga will open the year by playing the inaugural Brisbane
International next week, starting a month-long campaign Down Under
to go one better than his defeat in the final at Melbourne Park
last year.

The world No.6 is seeded second in Brisbane behind Serb world
No.3 Novak Djokovic, who defeated him in four sets in the
Australian Open final.

"For me, it was very difficult to lose the final to Novak, so
it's given me a lot of motivation for the rest of the year and now
I hope I will win against him the next time," Tsonga said in
Brisbane yesterday. "I'm confident [of winning the Australian Open]
because I've had a very good preparation.

"It's a new opportunity to play another final or win a
tournament."

Following his Melbourne Park final disappointment, Tsonga was
laid low by injuries but bounced back to win the Paris Masters to
show his January success - which included a semi-final upset of
Rafael Nadal - was no flash in the pan.

The 23-year-old has since got the better of Djokovic on three
occasions, including his last match at the Masters Cup in
November.

As Nadal finally ended Roger Federer's record of 237 consecutive
weeks at the top of the rankings after the Beijing Olympics, Tsonga
felt the days of one player cementing himself as No.1 were
over.

Asked who would be on top at the end of this year, Tsonga said:
"I hope me but I don't know. I think there is a lot of good players
and it's going to be a war."

Fellow former Australian Open finalist and Brisbane
International contender Marcos Baghdatis is one who believes Tsonga
will challenge Nadal, Federer, Djokovic and Scotsman Andy
Murray.

Tsonga was humbled to hear the popular Cypriot's view but made a
cheeky admission Baghdatis was a good judge. The Muhammad Ali
lookalike ramped up his preparations for his Australian campaign by
practising against fellow Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the
sweltering heat and humidity at Pat Rafter Arena yesterday. "I like
that," he said. "It gives me a very good preparation for the
Australian Open."

Tsonga denied he came to Australia with any extra pressure to
repeat the feats of last summer and indicated he'd be almost
unstoppable in Brisbane if his booming serve was on song.

"It is enough because you can usually break with a little bit of
luck and then you serve and you serve and you serve," he said.

Meanwhile, defending Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova
says she remains hopeful she will be in Melbourne to defend her
grand slam title later this month, despite being forced to withdraw
from next week's exhibition tournament in Hong Kong.

Sharapova has endured a year hampered by a shoulder injury, and
missed the Beijing Olympics and the US Open. She underwent
arthroscopic surgery in mid-October and only began practising last
month.

"It's with much disappointment that I have to withdraw from Hong
Kong," she said. "I've been using this event for the last five
years to get match fit and ready for the new season. In fact, Hong
Kong has been successful in preparing me for the Australian
Open.

"I'm just not ready to play against the top-class competition in
Hong Kong, although I remain hopeful for Australia, where I'm the
defending champion. Believe me, it's been a very difficult
decision, but I only started practising 16 days ago."

The 21-year-old also said in her "weekly doodle" on her website
that she knows the entire rehabilitation process has not only made
her stronger but also "more hungry".

"I miss competing so much," she wrote. "I am trying to do
everything possible to be ready for Australia but I have promised
my doctors, coach and family that I will not rush back.

"Since I started practising, I have only been able to practise
so many hours at a time which is why I don't feel like I am ready
to compete at a high level right now, and this is why I need to
pull out of the exhibition in Hong Kong.

"The great news is we have taken care of the problem that has
been bothering me so much over the last couple of years and now is
the time for me to get into what I call 'match shape'. I know my
shoulder will be 100 per cent by Australia. I just need to see if I
have enough tennis training to be ready for that level."

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